Fundamentalism

The Search for Meaning

Since the end of the Cold War fundamentalism has been seen as the major threat to world peace and prosperity, a concern that was exacerbated by the events of 9/11, and the War Against Terrorism . But what does Fundamentalism really mean? This is the first book to expose the real nature andspread of both secular and religious fundamentalism worldwide, and to explore the many different forms this can take. Fundamentalism is a problematic term that eludes easy definitions. Since it was coined by American Protestant evangelicals in the 1920s, the word has expanded its meaning to include radical conservatives or ideological purists in many spheres of activity, not all of them religious. Modernapplications of Fundamentalism include Islamist radicals in the Muslim world, the militant Israeli settlers who oppose them as well as Sikh, Hindu and even Buddhist nationalists who seek to justify their political agendas by reference to divine edicts or religious tradition. While questioning its usefulness as a term, Malise Ruthven argues that there are some 'family resemblances' between different fundamentalist movements, especially over concerns national identity and gender in a world dominated by the mass media and economic globalization.